Rodney Marsh expects Manchester City to turn on the heat against Manchester United

Former Manchester City striker Rodney Marsh has insisted that the Cityzens will have the better of United when the two face off at Old Trafford next weekend. The pundit believes that the return of Pablo Zabaleta and James Milner will add more bite to their team and the derby will bring the best out of Sergio Aguero, who has not been at his best off late.

The comment comes at a time when the Red Devils are high on confidence in the league, with wins against Tottenham and Liverpool in quick succession, followed by a 3-1 drubbing of Aston Villa. On the other hand, City will come into the fixture on the back of a 2-1 loss to Crystal Palace, which has left them on fourth place, behind Arsenal who are in second and United on third.

United have the momentum going forward, with Wayne Rooney in outstanding form and their midfield delivering the goods, especially Ander Herrera, who scored a brace in their last game against Villa.

The likes of Juan Mata and Angel di Maria have also been in top form and are pushing the right buttons in the midfield, which is opening up a plethora of goal-scoring opportunities for the 20-time champions.

Meanwhile, City have looked lethargic off late, especially since falling behind in the title race, with the players failing to live up to the billing in crunch encounters. The Cityzens have lost to Arsenal and Liverpool, since the turn of the year and were involved in a stalemate with Chelsea.

Manuel Pellegrini, who is running the risk of being sacked in only his second year at the club, needs to arrest the fall or see the likes of Liverpool, who are currently seven points behind in the race for the fourth spot, catch up on them.

"I'm going to go for a Man City banker win. I think they will come out firing. Pablo Zabaleta will be back, James Milner will be playing, and I think Sergio Aguero is going to have it off," Marsh told talkSPORT.

"I'm going to put on a lot of money for me, about £25, on a Man City win," he added.